Introduction

A comprehensive history of the Belgian Navy can be found in:
L. Nyssen. Einige Flaggen der belgischen Marine
von 1815 bis heute[nys96], Flaggenkurier[dfk] (1995), also available online.
Hereafter is the translation/rendition from German of the most
interesting parts (i.e. nearly everything) of the original
paper.

Ivan Sache & Suzette Tanis-Plant, 11 May 2003

Before independence (1815-1830)

Dutch national flag - Image by António Martins, 22 April 1999

In 1815, after the abdication of Napoléon and the fall of
the French First Empire, the Vienna
Congress decided to unify Belgium and Holland under William I's rule.
The new Kingdom of the Netherlands inherited more than 200 vessels
abandoned by France in the ports of Den
Helder and Antwerp. Since those
vessels were old, the King decided to start a reconstruction program
and it took 15 years to build 34 new vessels. Holland and Belgium
shared the costs.
These warships as well as the merchant navy used the
horizontally divided red-white-blue Dutch ensign, already known in the
16th century.

First Belgian national flag - Image by Ivan Sache, 22 February 2004

The opposition between Belgium and Holland increased with time,
and Belgians started to ask for a status of autonomy within the
Kingdom in 1830. On 26 August 1830, the Belgians chose their own
flag. The colours of the former Duchy of Brabant were placed
horizontally on the new flag, from top to
bottom red, yellow and black. The similarity with the colour pattern
of the Dutch flag was intended to mean that the opponents were not
promoting a total separation from the Netherlands.

Ivan Sache & Suzette Tanis-Plant, 11 May 2003

From independence to the First World War
(1830-1914)

First Belgian naval ensign - Image by Vincent
Morley, 16 January 1998

William I sent troops against the insurgents. Belgium proclaimed
independence after its victory during the fighting of September 1830.
In January 1831, the Provisory Government prescribed a new
vertical placement of the colours. In the text, as well as in the
Constitution adopted in February, the colour placement was described
as red, yellow and black, with a drawing next to the text showing a
non corresponding black-yellow-red flag. Moreover, while the
proportions in the drawing are 3:4, they are not explicitely
mentioned in the text. To make matters worse, the Decree was
distributed all over the country without the companion drawing.
Therefore, the Ministries of the Navy and the Interior each handled
down a ruling, in October and November, respectively, to specify that
black should be placed at hoist.

The question of the ensign hoisted by warships between 26 August
1830 and the end of 1831 is easily answered. The whole navy with a
few exceptions remained under Dutch rule, controlling
Antwerp and the Scheldt river. The
Belgians did not receive half of the fleet as they required because
they had paid for it. Most of the ships did not receive up-to-date
information, about the Revolution and the Belgian national ensign,
although a few of them did hoist the black-yellow-red ensign.
Since neither a Law nor a Regulation prescribed the proportions of
the "flag for all", the proportion 2:3 became the favoured ones. The
proportions of the Belgian flags used today for official purposes
(13:15, unique in the world) are still not
officially regulated.

The creation of the Belgian Navy was decided in 1831. It took
years to accomplish the task, especially because the Navy would not
come under the Ministry of War but Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The
Navy was named Marine Royale (Royal Navy). Over time, it was
administrated by different ministries and was fully incorporated into
the armed forces only in 1949 and finally came under the Ministry of
Defence.
Neither Belgian people nor Parliament showed any interest in the
Navy, whose funds and crew were constantly reduced.
However, a Royal ensign was introduced in 1858, and was to be hoisted
when the King was on board. The ensign was modified several times, in
practice every time the Head of the State changed.

In 1862, the Royal Navy was demilitarized and became a State Navy.
Its main duty was to increase the security of the sea link between
Oostende and Dover. The ensign remained
unchanged, divided vertically into black-yellow-red with proportions
2:3.

Fishery inspection pennant - Image by Ivan Sache, 11 May 2003

In 1882, the service of fishery inspection was created and
assigned to the State Navy. The inspection vessel hoisted the
national ensign and a specific flag
(triangular, 2:3, quartered yellow-blue-yellow-blue, with NW for
North-West [Atlantic]) in black in canton), which is still in use.

Ivan Sache & Suzette Tanis-Plant, 11 May 2003

From the First World War to the Second World
War (1914-1939)

Repeated attempts to reestablish a Navy failed in 1884, 1902 and
again in 1914. In 1917 the
Dépôt des Equipages (Crew Depot) was created. The
Belgians adopted the French uniform, including the beret, except it
had a blue instead of a red pompom. On 19 November 1919, the Depot
was renamed Section des Torpilleurs et Marins (Section of
Torpedo Boats and Seamen), and in 1924, it was once again renamed
Corps des Torpilleurs et Marins (Corps of Torpedo Boats and
Seamen). These units hoisted the aforementioned ensign and the
masthead pennant.

The Navy was suppressed again in 1926. Officiers and seamen were
incorporated into several units of the Army. Vessels were sold or
scrapped. Only the Zinnia was kept to comply with
international treaties. She was in charge of fishery inspection in
the North Sea. The vessel was painted grey, like a warship and
hoisted the masthead pennant, despite all regulations. This odd
situation caused several incidents: when a foreign warship saluted
the Zinnia with artillery shots and was answered with "blind
shots" only, signals were sent to ask wether she was really a warship
or not.

Belgium declared its neutrality in 1932 and 1934. After long
debates about the need of coastal protection in case of war, a Decree
dated 1936 established ensigns, honours
etc. to be allocated to the Navy. The text prescribed ensigns,
salutes and other courtesy items, but nothing was said about the
vessels themselves. The text prescribed two new ensigns for State and
private ships, whereas the merchant ensign was not changed. The
houseflags had to be allowed. A yacht ensign was also adopted.

Ivan Sache & Suzette Tanis-Plant, 11 May 2003

The Second World War (1939-1945)

Since the risk of war had increased, the Crew Depot was revived,
but there were still no vessels available. Fourteen days before the
declaration of war between Germany, France and Britain, hundreds of
mines were dropped in the Armel channel and along the border of the
Belgian territorial waters. The autumn storms washed up hundreds of
these mines on the coast. To protect the Belgian ports from the
danger, the Naval Corps was partially mobilized, and a few old ships
were requisitioned to start to pick up the mines.
On 12 May 1940, two days after Belgium entered in war, the Corps was
totally mobilized. The capitulation of the Belgian Army on 28 May
caused the withdrawal of the Corps to England by way of France.

The Corps was suppressed on 26 June 1940. The seamen were
incorporated into the Belgian Army in Great Britain. In agreement
with the British Admiralty, Navy Lieutenant Victor Billet organized
the recruiting of seamen, however he disappeared in Dieppe in 1942.
The Belgians had no other solution than being a section of the Royal
Navy named Royal Navy Section Belge
(RNSB).
The number of Belgian non-commissionned officers and seamen was so
low that they could not constitute Belgian crews. Therefore, seamen
of all ranks served in the Royal Navy under the
White Ensign. In 1942, they were
enough men to constitute the crew of the two corvets Godetia
and Buttercup. The units of the 118th mine-clearing flotilla
included more and more Belgian seamen. However, since the flotilla
did not come under Belgian command until the last few days of the
war, it used the ensign of the Royal Navy until the end of 1945.

After the war was over, Great Britain asked Belgium to take back
the Section Belge and its seamen, which was done on 9th
November. Under Belgian command, the unit was named Section
Navale. It included twelve vessels and was under the joint
control of Ministries of Transportation and Foreign Affairs. The only
ensign used was the State Navy ensign.

Concerning the Belgian merchant float, more than 80% of the ships
left for allied or neutral ports and were incorporated into the
allied forces. The Belgian float was involved in all of the war acts
of the allied forces, and experienced severe loss (1/3rd of the crew,
2/3rd of the ships representing 3/4th of the cumulated tonnage). All
of those ships fought under the Belgian tricolor ensign.

Ivan Sache & Suzette Tanis-Plant, 11 May 2003

After the Second World War (1945- )

The three national ensigns - for the State Navy, the merchant navy
and the yachts - remained unchanged. The ensign of the State Navy was
also hoisted by warships. The RNSB, renamed Section Navale in
November 1945, was commanded by a Commodore. It hoisted the ensign of
the State Navy, as did the Oostende-Dover steamers, lifeships and
lightships, Trinity House boats, tugboats and other service ships.

On 1 June 1946, Section Navale was renamed Force
Navale, by analogy with Force Terrestre (Army) and
Force Aérienne (Air Force). It was considered
unappropriate to revive the former name Marine Royale, because
the Royal question was controversial at that time.

On 15 June 1946, the regent Charles (King Léopold III was
still living in exile in Switzerland) gave the Belgian seamen a
standard designed on the model of
the regimental flags of the Army. The
standard should be used only for ceremonial purposes on land. It was
a Belgian Tricolore with the mention of all the battles during which
the seamen won fame. The standard (77 x 88 cm) was charged in canton
with the Medal of War Cross 1939-1945 with palm.

On 25 February 1949, the Navy was incorporated into the Armed
Forces, under the rule of the Ministry of Defence, ending 120 years
of hesitation between different ministeries. On 23 February 1950, the
Force Navale received its own
ensign, clearly different from the national, state and civil
ensigns as well from the yacht ensign.

When required, a jack (square
Belgian Tricolor) with a height of 1.50 m flies from the bowsprit. In
specific instances or during visit of important people on board, a
specific square ensign with a height of 1.50 m is hoisted, e.g. the
church ensign during a religious ceremony or the
rank ensign of naval officiers.

Ivan Sache & Suzette Tanis-Plant, 11 May 2003

Royal Navy Section Belge

Belgian warships commissioned for Royal Navy service will fly,
(a) Belgian Ensign and White Ensign side by side at ensign staff
or peak,
(b) British masthead pennant and,
(c) Union Flag at jackstaff when in harbour, or underway and
dressed with masthead flags.
In presence of enemy or when national character needs to be
indicated beyond possibility of misunderstanding a second White
Ensign will be flown at main yard-arm, or if this is not practical at
fore yard-arm.

A similar order about flags for French warships was issued by
Admiralty Message on 15th July 1940.